Target Shooting Matches, Discussion & Events > Field Target Gates
trouble holding steady in open division
rong1966:
I have been shooting open division for almost three years and can still not shoot steady. I was using a Maximus with Tac Vector 10-40 and now a Marauder field and target with the 10-40 Vector and cannot hold still. I sit on a yoga cushion and have tried shooting over my arm (elbow), shooting directly off my knee and shooting off a knee pad on my knee. I have a collection of four knee pads and none of them work well. Shooting over my arm is the most stable, but it is not even close to being steady. Does anyone have any advice? Should I try to switch to hunter division? I really prefer the high magnification in open and my eyesight makes it difficult to use holdover but would using sticks be that much more steady?
Motorhead:
If your flexible .... DEAD MAN position or a modified version there of.
Then again, thigh rests, adjustable hamsters & shooting coat are allowed in OPEN.
Guaranteed those that use them are more stable than those that don't.
Greg5850:
Ron,
First of all, You will never get perfectly steady. Try turning your scope down to about 24x so you don’t see as much movement. Is your yoga cushion solid? You want a seat that is totally inert and won’t bounce with your pulse.
Your position needs to be relaxed with no muscle strain, like the “deadman” position Scott recommended. Try to find a position you can be comfortable and relaxed in and just let the gun sit and balance on you. Try sitting on your cushion and watching TV, get comfortable and relaxed. Then try fitting your gun to your position ( probably not in your living room tho)
Find your natural point of aim. Sit in position and put eye to scope with eyes closed. When you open you should see crosshairs and target. Adjust your position until the target is there when you open your eyes. This is vital! Without a good NPA you will muscle the gun to the target, get tremors, and gun will try to move back when shot.
Have you tried a harness? They can make things a lot easier for you. Try all the above with harness, but find a relaxed position to harness.
Good luck
Greg
rong1966:
Thanks for the help. I can cross my ankles but that is as close as I can get to the deadman's position! My cushion is pretty stable and I have not used a harness. The Marauder is probably not the best candidate to shoot open with its narrow stock unless some sort of hamster is used. I think that dropping to 24x sounds like that might also help.
Scotchmo:
The "deadman" postition is very stable and if you are flexible enough, you don't really need a jacket, or harness, or even a riser or butthook on the gun. If you can get comfortable with the position, you'll quickly get accustomed to the sideways sight picture.
Careless match directors don't always follow the AAFTA course setting rules, so expect some low lying targets to be obscured by terrain/foliage. A stiff 6" high seat and/or a riser on the gun can give you some extra elevation:
You can practice the yoga "easy pose" in the living room. It becomes a very relaxed position. When you relax, the wobbles disappear and the only movement that you see in the sight picture is from your pulse/heart-rate.
Being able to achieve a stable shooting position without all the shooting aids gives me incentive to moderate my cookie intake. It's not always easy to do. When my gut starts to get in the way, I try to cut back.
The 16x limit in Hunter division is not so bad when shooting near 20fpe. The shooting sticks and high seat alleviates most of the target visibility problems. Getting stable enough when a the bucket and sticks also take some technique and practice.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
Go to full version